Advertisers can submit advertising copy (or “ad copy”) to a publisher for inclusion in a printed publication, such as a newspaper or a magazine. Typically, the ad copy can be provided in the form of a proof, which presents the advertisement using the format in which the advertisement should be run. The proof can be in hard copy form or electronic form. The publisher then can manually process the proof to incorporate it into the printed publication.
An advertiser typically also specifies the placement of the ad copy in the printed publication, including parameters such as the edition in which the ad copy is to appear, the page on which the ad copy is to run, and the size of the advertisement. If the ad copy supplied by the advertiser fails to satisfy one or more threshold criteria, the ad copy may not be included in the desired printed publication. Further, manual processing of the ad copy can delay notification to the advertiser that a piece of ad copy fails to satisfy one or more criteria.
An advertiser also must determine what advertising space is available for a particular edition of a printed publication. Typically, an advertiser can interact with the publisher to determine the format of the printed publication and the advertisement sizes available. For example, the size of an advertisement can be expressed using a number of parameters, including the height, width, and/or number of columns. The available advertising space can change between editions and also between sections of a single edition.
Once made, an offer to purchase advertising space in a printed publication is evaluated by the publisher to determine whether the ad copy will be accepted. If the ad copy conforms to the particular specifications of the advertising space available in a publication, the publisher can choose to accept the offer. Historically, advertisers have negotiated terms directly with the publisher, such as through a sales representative. For example, a publisher could provide standard rates and terms for a particular publication. If an advertiser accepted those terms, the ad copy would be placed in the printed publication. Further, a publisher can offer special terms or preferential pricing, such as for volume customers and new advertisers. Generally, the applicable rates and terms have been provided to advertisers upon request.